Music Business and Management
Course 3: Record Labels Marketing

It is the marketing department’s job to oversee the creation and development of effective marketing plans to promote new releases by artists signed to the record label. The primary function of a record label’s Marketing Department is the creation and development of all of the marketing plans to promote new releases. The Marketing Department works in conjunction with the Publicity, Sales, and Promotion Departments and their respective campaigns.

In this course, you’ll learn the Four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. This marketing mix has many variables (what the product is, the popularity of the artists associated with the product, etc.), although the key points are the same for most products. Determining the best way to promote these products and where to promote them also takes some consideration.

You’ll also cover how to develop a marketing plan and chart the life cycle of your product. Marketing plans are essential to properly setting up and rolling out new music releases. You need to get the music in front of their audience and then track how they are purchasing your music.

Marketing plans need to be flexible to adapt to changes in the market but should hold some structure. Your assignment for this course is to develop a marketing plan for your mentor, including innovative ways to get your client’s name in front of potential fans and differ. There will also be weekly reading, a blog entry, and a quiz to test your comprehension.